The Global PV Manufacturing Landscape in 2012 and Beyond: A Brave New World: The following is an excerpt from

To answer questions of this sort requires an analysis framework that is both granular and comprehensive. Granularity is needed in the sense of tracking competitive positioning metrics in significant detail (and therefore being able to say, for example, that China Sunergy’s wafer cost in 2012 will be higher than the market price of wafers, while Yingli’s will not). Comprehensiveness means understanding the totality of metrics that drive competitive positioning for all major players, and keeping an eye on their evolution over time. For example, Renesola might have among the lowest wafer conversion costs in the industry, but this means precious little if it cannot raise additional capital to shore up a weak balance sheet through a fiscal year that is likely to be cash-negative. Similarly, irrespective of how low Talesun’s module costs are in 2012, its penetration prospects in...